read for PopSugar 2019 Reading Challenge: a book with a two word title

I think I'm solidly a 3.5 on this one, but I'm not quite sure if I want to round up or down. There was a lot of I liked, but a decent amount that I felt mediocre towards. I thought Robin was given so much more to do in this novel which I loved. She's struggling with the trauma from the end of the previous novel, which I thought was so excellently portrayed. Her relationship, as always, drove me nuts but Robin gets some beautiful confrontational scenes.

OH MY GOD WHY DID SHE MARRY MATT HE'S THE FUCKING WORST AHHHHH

There's also quite a bit of suspense in the novel that was written so well, and Robin gets to be a star in a lot of it.

The biggest thing that drove me nuts was how Cormoran and Robin just didn't talk with each other about what was going on in their lives. It was really frustrating because the communication issues could have been solved so quickly if they were just honest. This is one of my biggest issues with romance novels (which this book is obviously not) because it's not a compelling enough reason to have tension between the characters. We keep bouncing back and forth between Robin and Strike making assumptions about one another and it's really dumb.

As for the plot and the mystery, I honestly felt confused for so much of it. There were just plot lines going in every direction, and while they did tie together, if took a lot of to get there. Some of the stakes almost didn't feel high enough either

it might be a cultural thing but I didn't understand the big deal with the gallows, especially because there are rich people making money off selling weapons to third world countries so it just didn't feel like there was much risk?

Another cultural difference was how much of the story relied on class differences. I think those class structures are much more distinct in the UK due to their aristocracy and the US has the "American Dream" of everyone being able to make it (which is very flawed in its own way). So while I get the struggles of the rich vs poor, I think that plays out differently and allowed me to not fully get things.

which ties into Charlotte who pops up again for nothing really? Just some angst? i do not understand this relationship or appeal besides the fact that Charlotte is consistently describe as "the most beautiful woman in the world" ok

All in all, I'll still stick with the series because I really enjoy the audiobooks. The narrator, as always, gave a stunning performance and is a delight to listen to!